


Delivering Holiday Cheer

by Diakkomass 2020 (Diakkomass20xx), toasty_coconut



Series: Diakkomass 2020 [13]
Category: Little Witch Academia
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Holiday Cheer
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-21
Updated: 2020-12-21
Packaged: 2021-03-10 23:40:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,684
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28205472
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Diakkomass20xx/pseuds/Diakkomass%202020, https://archiveofourown.org/users/toasty_coconut/pseuds/toasty_coconut
Summary: HO HO HO!! For the 19th day of Diakkomass, it looks like winter break and Christmas time has fallen like snow on the quiet shoulders of Luna Nova Academy. Toasty_Coconut presents us a story in which a very persistent Santa tries to get the Scrooge to have fun and stop spending so much time in her dorm!! Join Akko on her quest to get Diana feeling the Christmas spirit so much she goes to the Shiny Spectacular Christmas Bash hosted by yours truly! (her!!) It's a party you definitely don’t wanna miss and Akko’s put all hands on deck to make the Grinch enjoy Christmas again!!- Flowoftime
Relationships: Diana Cavendish/Atsuko "Akko" Kagari
Series: Diakkomass 2020 [13]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2034991
Comments: 20
Kudos: 63





	Delivering Holiday Cheer

Luna Nova was exactly the way Diana Cavendish liked it—quiet. 

With the autumn term over, many students had packed up their bags and returned home for the holidays. Diana was not one of them. She had elected to stay on campus to focus on her studies instead of spending another dreary Christmas with her aunt and cousins. She didn’t mind though; she preferred it that way. She enjoyed the silence.

Even her dorm room felt quieter than usual. Barbara had decided to go home and wouldn’t be back until after the new year. Hannah, on the other hand, chose to stay behind with Diana—also not seeming particularly thrilled by the idea of spending time with her family. So, with only one half of their inseparable duo present, the typical bedroom chatter was greatly reduced.

Yes, things were quiet. And for that alone, Diana was immensely grateful. 

That was, until a loud knocking on the door nearly made her jump out of her seat. Before Diana could get up to see what was going on herself, she heard Hannah let out an exasperated sigh from her side of the room. Her footsteps banged across the hardwood floor until the door was yanked open with a violent swish.

“What do you want, Akko?” Hannah snipped, her tone oozing with annoyance. It was what she said next that left Diana a little more than curious. “And… what are you _wearing_?”

“ _Ho ho ho!_ ” Akko’s voice boomed. “I’m not Akko, little girl! I’m Santa Claus!”

“ _Little girl?_ ”

Deciding Hannah was not the best candidate to handle whatever antic Akko was attempting to pull this time, Diana rose from her desk to take care of the situation herself. Upon turning past her bookshelf and looking at the doorway, she paused. “Akko…?”

Standing at the door was none other than Atsuko Kagari herself. But what made Diana do a double take was the bright red Santa hat atop her head and—more oddly—the bushy white beard strapped to her face. She was also carrying some type of brown sack over her shoulder.

“Diana, I said I’m not Akko!” Akko whined, but caught herself, clearing her throat. “I mean…” She lowered her voice down to a fake, masculine baritone. “You must be talking about that wonderful girl who’s on my nice list every year!” She nodded, stroking her beard. “Yes, yes, I’m very familiar with her! But I’m not her! I’m Santa!”

“Okay, Santa,” Hannah droned dismissively, “what do you want?”

Akko clicked her tongue, narrowing her eyes. “Keep talking that way and you’ll get a lump of coal in your stocking!” 

Hannah rolled her eyes. Akko ignored her. “Anyways! A few of my favorite elves told me that there’s a group of girls who are staying at Luna Nova for the holidays! That’s why I’m putting together _this_!”

Reaching into her sack, Akko yanked out a flyer and shoved it in their faces. It looked to be hand-drawn—scribbles of crayon etching out Christmas trees, ornaments, and presents. Written across the top in large, black letters was— 

“Santa’s Shiny Spectacular Christmas Bash…” Hannah read aloud.

“That’s right!” Akko nodded. “I’m going to be throwing the biggest holiday party Luna Nova’s ever seen!” she declared, putting her hands to her belly. “Ho ho ho!”

According to the flyer, the event was going to be just that—a Christmas party being held in Luna Nova’s cafeteria on Christmas Eve night. Somehow though, Diana had the sinking suspicion that hosting a party at Luna Nova wouldn’t be as simple as just wanting to do so.

“Do you even have the proper permissions to be doing something like this, Akko?” Diana asked, arching a quizzical brow. “I highly doubt Professor Finnelan will—”

“Professor Ursula said it’s okay!” Akko quickly defended. And with her Santa act falling flat again, she coughed and lowered her voice, “Or… Santa does what he wants! It’s Christmas!”

“It’s December 18th,” Hannah corrected, and when Akko glared at her, she scoffed and handed her back the flyer. “Anyways, thanks, but no thanks. I’m not spending my Christmas Eve in the cafeteria with you and Sucy.”

Akko hummed, closing her eyes with a nod. “Well then, I’ll just let Elf Amanda know to scratch one off my guest list…”

Hannah suddenly perked up. “Huh? W-well…” she stammered, and Diana cast her a long, unimpressed gaze. “Maybe I was a little too hasty.” She coughed, trying to hide the blush that dusted her cheeks. “I’ll see if I have an opening in my schedule.”

“Mhm,” Akko intoned knowingly, shifting her attention onto Diana with a big grin. “And what about you, little girl? Can Santa count on you to show up?”

Diana sighed. “While I appreciate the invite, I’m afraid I have too much to do this coming week. I’ll have to decline.”

“Wha?!” Akko gawked. “You’re seriously busy even on _Christmas_?”

“Yes. I need to begin preparing for the start of next term. If I don’t—”

Akko groaned, throwing her head back. “Literally nobody starts worrying about that stuff until the day before, Diana! Take a break and enjoy the holiday spirit!” She narrowed her eyes. “Or are you actually just a Grinch?”

“If you’re attempting to imply that I hold disdain for the holidays, I assure you that’s incorrect,” Diana huffed. “It’s a lovely time of year. I’ve just never been one for the festivities surrounding it all.”

“So you don’t hate Christmas…” Akko started slowly, “you just hate _Christmas cheer_.”

Diana deadpanned. “I said no such thing.”

“ _Bah-humbug!_ ” Akko spat, crossing her arms in front of her chest. “That’s what it sounded like to me!” She held out a finger, pointing it straight in Diana’s face. “Listen, you’re gonna come to my Christmas party and have a super fun time! I’m not letting you spend Christmas alone prepping for Magic Linguistics or whatever!”

Diana pushed Akko’s hand away. “Have you considered, perhaps, that that’s how I would _like_ to spend my Christmas?”

Akko pouted, slouching forward. “But that’s so boring!”

“...I’m sort of with Akko on this one,” Hannah agreed, crinkling her nose. “That’s pretty dull, Diana. Even for you.”

Diana let out an exasperated breath. “Girls, I already told you—Christmas festivities simply are not to my liking.”

“Then I’ll make you want to come!” Akko proclaimed, straightening herself out with a proud nod.

Diana scrunched her face in confusion. “What?”

“If I can’t get you to come on your own, then I’ll make you _want_ to come on your own!” Akko declared, placing her hands firmly on her hips. “By the end of this week you’ll be so full of Christmas cheer you’ll be puking up candy canes! That’ll get you coming to my party!”

“Gross,” Hannah cringed. 

“Akko—!”

“Not Akko! Santa!” Akko corrected, slapping a hand to her chest and lowering her voice once more. “Now, I must be off! I have many more invites to hand out!” She spun on her heel and sprinted down the hall, leaving no room for any more argument. “Dash away, dash away, dash away, all!”

Both Hannah and Diana continued to stand in their doorway in silence for a long moment after. That was, until Hannah blurted out, “What _actually_ happened just now?”

* * *

If the chill that was spreading around Luna Nova was an indicator of anything, it was a sign that winter was rapidly approaching. And nothing solidified that fact more than the snow that was gently falling onto the campus grounds outside Diana’s dorm room window. While snow wasn’t exactly a rare sight in Glastonbury, it wasn’t a common one, either. 

Diana actually quite enjoyed the snow. Everything about it felt so serene, and the way it decorated the campus almost made it feel, well, magical. She would have liked nothing more than to curl up by her window with a hot cup of tea, a good book, and enjoy watching it fall for the rest of the day. However, as fate would have it, there seemed to be other plans in store for her that day.

_‘Come to the courtyard!! Wear gloves!! - Akko’_

She had found the note slipped beneath her door. She wasn’t sure how long it had been there for, but she knew she wasn’t going to have any other choice than to investigate its message. Putting thoughts of tea and books aside, Diana gathered her things, slipped her coat and gloves on, and made her way through Luna Nova’s various halls until stepping out into the courtyard.

The chilling breeze nipped at her nose, though the air still felt cool and refreshing. Upon exhaling, she could see a white puff of her own breath. The sound of laughter nearby caught her attention. Her eyes followed the source of the sound until she saw a group of four people several yards away. 

Akko and Amanda stood huddled together behind a wall of snow. Further away from them, Sucy and Constanze poked their heads out from behind their own snow barrier. With a grin, Akko patted down a chunk of snow between her hands and chucked it across the courtyard. Sucy ducked just in time for the snow to shoot past her and slam into one of Luna Nova’s windows instead.

Diana cringed as the group continued to hurl snow at one another—making a mess of Luna Nova’s windows, walls, and statues decorating the courtyard. She exhaled, firmly stepping forward.

“Akko!” Diana snapped, marching toward the group. “What are you doing? This is hardly permissible behavior for school grounds.”

Amanda let out a loud groan, tossing her head back. “Party’s over, everyone,” she called, glaring at Diana. “The chief of the fun police is here.”

Akko didn’t seem to notice Amanda’s displeasure. Instead, she perked up and beamed, stumbling to her feet. “Oh, hey, Diana!” she greeted, gesturing to the snow wall in front of her. “We’re working on a fort for our snowball fight!” Part of the fort tumbled to the ground. “Come play with us!”

Diana raised a brow, crossing her arms. “I think not,” she dismissed, looking around at the mess that had been made of the grounds. “If you have any sense at all then you’ll get rid of this before Professor Finnelan sees it.”

“Oh my god, put a sock in it, Cav,” Amanda grunted, chucking a wad of snow at Constanze, who blocked it with—what appeared to be—a metal shield. “It’s just snow. It’s all gonna melt anyways.”

Diana narrowed her eyes. It wasn’t like she wanted to be the one who reprimanded them for having fun. In fact, Diana agreed that there was little harm to be done with simply playing in the snow. However, with Akko, Amanda, Constanze, and Sucy involved, she could already envision broken windows and destroyed property when the snowball fight inevitably got out of hand. And regardless of if it actually did or not, she had the feeling that Professor Finnelan wouldn’t care either way.

Akko grunted, forming another snowball between her hands. “She’s just mad because she hates Christmas.”

Amanda blinked. “What? Really?”

Diana reeled back, flabbergasted at the sudden accusation. Of _course_ that’s what this was about. She recovered, scowling, “ _Akko_.”

“Yep. She said it herself. Right to my face,” Akko lamented, ignoring Diana’s glare. “She doesn’t even wanna come to my Christmas party!” She perked up, clenching her snowball. “So I figured getting her in on our snowball fight would be a good way to get her in the Christmas spirit!”

Amanda scoffed, side eyeing Diana. “Dang, I knew you were dull, but to think you hate Christmas…”

Constanze, who had seemed to overhear their conversation from her side of the courtyard, had written the word, _‘Scrooge’_ across her and Sucy’s snow fort.

Diana could feel her blood beginning to boil. “I _don’t_ hate Christmas,” she argued as Akko and Amanda exchanged skeptical looks. Diana let out a long breath, cooling herself off. “And _this_ hardly qualifies as Christmas festivities, anyways.” She turned on her heel, her back facing the group. “Now please start cleaning it up.”

She wasn’t going to deal with this. She had better things she could be doing right now than getting into petty arguments with Akko and Amanda. She had a book and a hot cup of tea waiting for her back in her dorm room. If they wanted to get in trouble, then so be it. _She_ wasn’t about to— 

“Oh, so you don’t hate Christmas. You’re just a chicken,” Akko noted plainly. “I get it.”

Diana stopped dead in her tracks. She glanced back over her shoulder. “What?”

“You’re afraid you’ll lose to Amanda and I—that’s why you don’t wanna play,” Akko teased, fixing some of the snow on her fort with a shrug. “All right, Diana, suit yourself.”

Diana felt her blood beginning to boil again. Heavens, _why_ was her blood beginning to boil again? This was so frivolous. She wasn’t about to get worked up over something like Akko teasing her because she didn’t want to partake in a _snowball fight_.

“I never said that,” Diana snipped, narrowing her gaze dangerously. “I just do not wish to partake in something as _juvenile_ as—!”

“Chicken!” Akko hollered, whipping a snowball forward.

It happened so fast that Diana barely had a chance to register it at all. One moment she was speaking, the next something heavy and _cold_ was slamming right into her face. For a brief moment she _almost_ thought she blacked out. But the sensation of snow dripping down her cheeks and Amanda’s rasped laugh of, ‘ _Oh shit_ ’ brought her back to reality.

Akko actually just had the _audacity_ to throw _snow_ in her face. And the worst part of all? She was _smirking_ about it. That infuriating girl was actually _smirking_ from ear to ear right in her direction. Diana wasn’t even sure what came over her. She didn’t even think, she just acted. She just wanted to wipe _that stupid look off of Atsuko Kagari’s face that instant._

One moment Diana was standing there, as still as stone. The next moment she was reaching into her coat pocket, pulling out her wand, and casting a levitation spell on the pile of freshly fallen snow sitting atop one of Luna Nova’s rooftops. Both Akko and Amanda let out frightened cries as a veritable avalanche toppled right on them—thoroughly burrowing them both.

Constanze and Sucy hadn’t even flinched. Constanze’s eyes were wide with some mix of fear and awe. Sucy didn’t seem moved; though she did give off an aura of amusement (likely at Akko’s expense). Diana huffed, retracting her wand and slipping it back into her pocket as she marched over to the snowpile Akko and Amanda were buried beneath. 

It was so unlike her to be positively glowing with pride over something like this, but whenever she thought about the look on Akko’s face, she couldn’t help it. As she approached, Akko popped her head out from the snow. She was flabbergasted beyond belief, staring at Diana with a look that said a thousand words and nothing at all.

Diana stopped in her tracks, bending down to Akko’s level. “Let me think,” she mused, tapping a finger to her chin, “if I recall, the rules to a snow war state that the one covered in the most snow by the end of it loses.”

Akko nodded wordlessly, her mouth hanging open.

It was so, _so_ childish, but Diana couldn’t stop the sense of pride she felt burning in her core. “Now, I may have a bit of snow on me, but the two of you…” She gestured to the snow covering every part of their bodies. “Well, the results speak for themselves.” 

Diana stood up straight, brushing off the bit of snow that remained on her jacket. She could feel a smirk take shape on her own lips as she spun on her heel and marched away from the courtyard. “Have a good day.”

Akko was speechless.

* * *

The next time Diana found a letter under her door it was stained with smears of chocolate on its edges.

_‘Follow the chocolate chip road for a surprise! -Akko’_

Sure enough, upon opening her door, Diana noticed several chocolate chips placed carefully down the hallway of the east wing dormitories. She furrowed her brows in confusion as she began to follow the trail that had been left for her—all the while mentally scrutinizing Akko for having created such a pointless mess in the first place when she could have just told her where to go.

The longer the trail became, the more frustrated Diana grew. Before she knew it, she was heading down the stairs and into the North Hallway until she reached the cafeteria, where the trail stopped right in front of the kitchen doors. Raising a brow, she pushed the doors open.

A couple of faeries stood at the oven or the sink, casting their gaze up at the noise. Akko was standing near them at one of the kitchen counters—her hair tied back in a high ponytail and an apron tied around her waist. She perked up when hearing the door open, snapping her head to look at Diana. She beamed, her face covered in chocolate and flour. 

“Diana, you made it!”

Diana glanced around. The kitchen was in a state of chaos—messy bowls, spatulas, and trays lining the counters. “Akko, what is this?”

“We’re making Christmas cookies!” Akko answered, rushing over and tugging Diana by the wrist toward the oven. “And I wanted you to help! There’s no better way to get into the Christmas spirit than by making cookies with your pals!” She snickered, wiggling her eyebrows. “Pretty clever of me, huh?”

She should have known after the first letter Akko had left for her. Diana huffed in annoyance. “All you did was make a mess,” she chided, jerking her wrist out of Akko’s grasp. “ _Surely_ there must have been a more practical way to—!” 

Akko reached out, pressing a finger to Diana’s lips. “But you’re here now, aren’t you?” she prodded with a wink. Diana could feel a rush of heat flooding her cheeks, and Akko laughed, waving a hand. “C’mon! We’re not even halfway done!”

Diana hesitated, looking around. “I… suppose I can at least ensure you aren’t making a mess of the kitchen.”

Akko picked up a wad of cookie dough. “You’re _supposed_ to make a mess,” she said, popping it into her mouth. “That’s part of the fun!”

“Yes, well, regardless—everything has its limits,” Diana dismissed. Looking around the kitchen, she began to notice just how many trays were set up on the counter—some with cookies that were fully cooked and others that were just wads of dough. “Why are you making so many anyways?”

“It’s for the party!” Akko grinned. “I’ve gotta be sure that we have enough for everyone.”

“It seems a little excessive…”

“Wrong. You can never have too many cookies.” 

Diana sighed, knowing that there was no point in arguing it any further. She resigned and began to pull her hair out of the way. “Well, what can I help you with, then?”

As if she had been prepared for this exact moment, Akko reached into the pocket of her apron and took out several small, colored tubes. She slapped them down on the counter in front of Diana. “This!”

Diana raised a brow. “Which is…?”

“Icing, duh!” Akko teased, flicking Diana’s forehead. “You can decorate the cookies! See?” She lifted a finger, pointing across the room. “Those are some of the ones I did over there!”

Following Akko’s finger, Diana could see several dozen cookies layed out carefully on a tray. They were cut out into shapes of snowflakes, christmas trees, stars, and gingerbread men. Each one was delicately frosted and decorated with different patterns and designs. The bright colors and smiling faces on the gingerbread men were very Akko.

Diana gave a curt nod, picking up one of the tubes Akko had given her. “That sounds simple enough. All right. I’ll try.”

“I’m counting on you!” Akko said with a wink, and Diana could have sworn she felt her heart skip a beat.

With that, Akko stepped away, walking over to one of the faeries to check on the work he was doing. Diana was left alone with a tray of gingerbread men in front of her. She nodded to herself and began her assigned task—spreading a thin layer of vanilla frosting across the top of the cookies. 

She eventually managed to do that for each one of them. When she finished she found herself glancing at the colored tubes Akko had left for her. Diana knew that this was where the tricky part came in. Picking up the red one, she used it to carefully dot two eyes onto her gingerbread man. Moments later, he was staring back up at her with a smile—red eyes sparkling and all. Diana nearly smiled back at him. 

Soon enough, each and every one of them had been decorated with different icing colors. The clock had ticked by much faster than she anticipated. She turned her head over her shoulder to look at Akko, who had busied herself helping a minotaur use a cookie cutter.

“All right. I believe I’ve finished them.”

Akko’s face lit up, her eyes sparkling. “Oh, let me see!” she enthused, rushing over to Diana’s side. “I bet they’re super—!”

Akko stopped dead in her tracks and her face contorted into a look Diana couldn’t quite describe. Was she… smiling? Or, wait… maybe she was angry? With the way her mouth kept twisting it was almost hard to tell.

“...What?” Diana pressed. “Why are you making that face?”

“I-I’m not making a face,” Akko defended, clearing her throat and biting her lip. “I’m just… amazed that they’re so…”

Diana looked from Akko to her cookies. “Is there something wrong with them?”

“I mean…” Akko coughed, putting a fist to her mouth. “It’s just… you just…”

Diana squinted, still trying to get a read on _what_ exactly Akko was trying to say. However, when Akko burst out into a fit of laughter Diana’s jaw dropped, aghast by the reaction. Several faeries looked over curiously, some exchanging dubious looks with each other.

Diana’s face heated up and she hissed, “ _Akko_!”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” Akko apologized through laughter, holding her gut. “I can’t help it! Why do they look like that!?” She pointed to one of the gingerbread men. “D-does this one have three eyes!?”

The gingerbread man in question certainly did _not_ have three eyes. Or, well, he wasn’t _meant_ to have three eyes, in Diana’s opinion, at least. “That’s his nose!”

“Noses aren’t on your forehead!”

Diana scowled, turning her head away and crossing her arms as Akko continued to laugh. “I’ve never done this before,” she admitted, doing everything in her power to hide the blush on her face. “So it’s only natural that my performance may be slightly… _inadequate_.”

Akko’s laughing came to an immediate stop. Her jaw dropped and her eyes may have bulged out of her head if she could look any more surprised. “Wait. You’ve _never_ decorated Christmas cookies?”

“N-no!” Diana snipped, glancing back at Akko. “The manor chefs always did things of this sort. There was never any need for my assistance in the kitchen.”

Akko’s expression turned smug and she stepped forward, slinging an arm around her shoulders. “Aw, man, Diana,” Akko ribbed with a shake of her head. She looked over at the faeries with a wink. “The woes of the rich. Right?” 

There was a low, audible groan and a few chuckles from the faeries on the other side of the room. Diana noticed the way some of them rolled their eyes or shook their heads. She glowered, looking back at her cookies. Upon closer inspection, she supposed she could see Akko’s point. Compared to the ones Akko herself had decorated, hers seemed to be… _lacking_.

She let out a tired breath, placing down the tube of icing she held on the counter. “Well, if they displease you so then throw them away.”

“No way!” Akko chirped, and Diana raised a brow. When she looked at Akko, she saw that she had a bright smile plastered on her face. Akko shrugged. “They’re kinda funny, but they’re perfect! I love them!” 

The blush from before began to creep its way up Diana’s neck again. Akko stepped beside her, putting one of Diana’s cookies in her mouth and crunching with relish. “Besides, they taste great and we’re not about to waste food in here.”

Diana watched as Akko rested her elbow on the counter. Her sleeves were rolled up. Why was she noticing that Akko’s sleeves were rolled up? Why did she _care_ that Akko’s sleeves were rolled up? Why was thinking about it making her face even warmer?

Akko leaned toward Diana with a raised brow and lifted one of the tubes of icing. “How about I give you a few pointers instead?”

Diana’s eyes flicked from Akko, to the icing, and then back to Akko. She cleared her throat, closing her eyes and wiping a bit of flour off of her skirt. “I would find that…” she trailed off, opening an eye to glance at Akko. She smiled at her. 

Diana smiled back. 

“Acceptable.”

* * *

By the time the third note arrived, Diana couldn’t even call herself surprised anymore. In fact, she had been almost eagerly expecting it. 

_‘Come to the cafeteria! I have a surprise! -Akko’_

So to the cafeteria she went. Fortunately, there was no chocolate covering the floor this time. She was sure Professor Finnelan chewed Akko out for it yesterday. Unless the faeries had her back and cleaned it up before Finnelan noticed—which was… more likely than Diana cared to admit.

Upon opening the cafeteria doors, Diana stopped dead in her tracks. She was at a loss for words as her eyes widened at the sight in front of her. The cafeteria—which had been entirely plain just 24 hours earlier—was bursting with shades of red and green. Paper chains decorated the balcony. Crafted snowflakes hung from the ceiling. Snowmen made of cotton balls sat atop the tables. But the most noteworthy thing of all was the 15-foot pine tree standing proudly at the room’s center.

Near the top of the tree, Akko hovered on her broom, reaching over to hang an ornament from one of its branches. A faery floated beside her, holding a box of red and silver balls that Akko took her pick from to place on the tree. 

Despite her awe over the situation, Diana’s inner prefect could only be contained for so long while seeing about a dozen school rules being broken simultaneously. 

She stepped forward and cleared her throat. “I am going to ignore the fact that you are riding a broom indoors in order to ask where, exactly, did a tree of this size come from?”

Akko flinched, her attention caught by Diana’s voice. Her chipper expression faltered and she coughed. “I found it.”

“Found it _where_?”

“...Uh, outside,” Akko explained and Diana narrowed her eyes, tapping her foot. Akko let out an exasperated sigh, hovering down to Diana’s level. “Hey! Christmas trees are meant to be decorated!” She defended with a pout. “It looked so sad out there without all the lights and stuff! Now it’s happy!” She wagged a finger at her. “Are you gonna deny a tree its happiness, Diana?”

Diana’s gaze shifted from Akko to the tree behind her. She _highly_ doubted that Akko went out and legally purchased a Christmas tree of this size herself. In fact, the more likely story was that she found one she liked on the grounds, asked the faeries to help her cut it down, and then dragged it back into the school without a care in the world.

“I assume you’ve been given special permission to do this?”

Akko scoffed. “If I didn’t, would the faeries be helping me?”

Diana’s stare didn’t falter.

“... _Yes_ , the teachers said it’s okay.”

Well, that settled that. Even if Akko’s methods remained questionable to Diana at best, there was little reason to argue them any further as long as she had the proper authorization. Instead, she focused back on the task at hand.

“And for what reason was my presence requested here?”

“To help decorate, of course!”

“Decorate?”

“Yep!” Akko’s grin fell and she almost looked worried. “...Please tell me you’ve at least put ornaments on a tree before.”

“ _Yes_ , I—! Of course I have!”

“Well, good! You don’t need me to teach you this time, then! Did you bring your broom?”

“No,” Diana responded, raising a brow. “You didn’t ask me to.”

“Oh. Guess I forgot,” Akko laughed sheepishly, rubbing at the back of her neck. “That’s fine! We can share mine!”

“That won’t be necessary,” Diana dismissed, pulling her wand from her belt. “I can just use a levitation sp—!”

In the blink of an eye, Akko zoomed in front of her, nearly knocking Diana off her feet in the process. She grinned, patting the back of her broom. “Hop on!”

Riding on the back of a broom to decorate a tree was nothing short of impractical. It would be so much easier if she used a simple levitation spell to place ornaments on the harder to reach areas. Sitting behind Akko would just be crammed _and_ unsafe.

But she couldn’t take her eyes off the back of Akko’s broom.

“…All right.” 

And just like that, Diana was sitting behind Akko—a box of ornaments in hand as they hovered up to the top of the tree. Akko adjusted herself to sit on the broom sideways, lifting one of the ornaments out of the box.

“So, you’ve never decorated a Christmas cookie, but you _have_ decorated a Christmas tree?” she asked, eyeing Diana with a smirk. “Guess that means your staff doesn’t do _everything_ for you, huh?”

“Of course not,” Diana huffed, pulling out an ornament of her own. “Actually, I used to quite enjoy decorating our family’s Christmas tree.” She reached forward, hanging it from one of the branches. “It was something I used to do with my mother every year.”

Those Christmases all felt so far away—but they were memories she cherished. She remembered standing beside her mother as they placed ornaments of all different shapes, sizes, and colors around the tree. The fireplace would be lit, hot chocolate on the table, and Christmas music playing from one of her mother’s favorite vinyls. 

Even though it was so long ago, she could still feel the moment’s warmth. 

“And…” Akko began, lowering her voice, “you don’t get to do that anymore...”

Diana stopped, looking down at her own reflection staring back up at her within the box of ornaments. “... No. I don’t,” she responded, picking up another ornament. “I believe Aunt Daryl leaves that task up to the staff now.”

Akko hesitated, shifting nervously. “Is that… why you aren’t going home for Christmas? ‘Cause of your aunt, I mean.”

Diana let out a breath, taking a moment to stare at the ornament she held in her hand. Akko perked up with a frown, waving her hands in front of her.

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to—!”

“It’s fine,” Diana assured quickly, looking at Akko with a smile.

Akko eased up, her posture relaxing as Diana continued on with, “Yes, I’m not especially fond of being around my family during this time of year.” She gave a light chuckle. “You’ve seen how they are.” She leaned forward, hanging the ornament off of a tree branch. “I’ve found it both more productive and more enjoyable for me to remain at school instead.”

“Oh. I guess I get that,” Akko responded, slowly. “Still…” She furrowed her brows, clenching her fists, “it doesn’t mean you should spend Christmas alone with books!”

“Akko, I’ve told you, it’s fine,” Diana breathed, casting Akko a tired glance. “I don’t mind. I prefer it that way.”

“But Christmas is about being with people you care about and stuff! Isn’t it?” Akko grasped Diana’s hand in her own, almost knocking the box of ornaments out of her lap. “That’s why I want you to spend it with your friends!”

Diana leaned back, catching her breath as Akko scooted closer. Her hands were warm, her fingers locking tightly with Diana’s. She wasn’t sure how to respond. Christmas wasn’t exactly a holiday that she cared much to spend with anyone. Maybe it was because the memories were too painful, or maybe she really did just prefer to be alone. Either way, she didn’t believe Akko would take those excuses as an acceptable answer.

“I know that Christmas probably isn’t an easy time of year for you…” Akko continued, her face sinking into a frown. “So I just… wanna make sure you have a little fun, ya know?”

While Diana didn’t consider Akko to be a selfish person ( _most_ of the time), it still always surprised her to see how willingly Akko would go out of her way to help others. Had she really spent that entire week trying to get Diana into the ‘holiday spirit’ for the sole purpose of making sure she wouldn’t feel alone because of her family life? The thought was… touching in its own way.

Diana sighed, reciprocating Akko’s grip and gave a small smile. “Well, I appreciate that you’re thinking of me,” she said, and Akko peeked up at her. Diana nodded her head toward the tree. “But you have a party to plan, don’t you? Why don’t you continue focusing on that for now.”

Akko blinked, glancing at the tree and then back to Diana. She grinned, letting go of Diana’s hand and clenching her fists. “Yeah. You’re right. A party that you’re definitely coming to!”

Diana huffed out a laugh. “Yes, well, we’ll see about that.”

Over the following hour, Diana remained in the cafeteria with Akko decorating the massive tree. She had eventually convinced Akko that sharing a broom wasn’t the best solution for lining the tree with ribbons and was allowed to use levitation magic instead. Akko only got herself tangled in the ribbon twice and only broke one box of ornaments (which Akko herself considered an accomplishment, for some reason). Akko even gave Diana the ‘privilege’ (as she had called it) of placing the star on top of the tree. When all was said and done, Diana ended up having a more enjoyable time than she would have predicted at the start.

“Okay!” Akko proclaimed, placing her hands on her hips as she proudly stared up at the Christmas tree. She turned her head to look at a minotaur standing on the other side of the room. “Can you hit the lights? I wanna make sure the tree looks good!”

The minotaur grunted a response, flashing Akko a thumbs up as he flicked the cafeteria lights off. The room was momentarily filled with darkness before the Christmas tree bloomed into life with twinkling white lights.

Akko gasped in excitement, bouncing on her heels. “Wow, it’s so sparkly!” she enthused, clapping her hands together. “What do you think, Diana?”

The tree was magnificent in its own right, Diana could say that. The shimmering white lights made the ornaments they had hung off of the branches shine. The entire room itself seemed to glow in faint shades of yellow and orange. It was amazing what just a little bit of decorating could do.

Despite how stunning the tree looked, Diana’s eyes kept wandering over to the girl standing beside her. If the lights on the tree were making the ornaments shine, then they were making Akko’s eyes shine even brighter. Everything about her seemed to positively gleam under the Christmas lights. For that sight alone, she was almost glad she decided to stay and help decorate.

She smiled.

“It’s perfect.”

* * *

The following days were filled with more and more letters from Akko. There was one evening where she dragged her to the green team’s bedroom to watch a marathon of old Christmas movies on a projector that Constanze had set up. There was another day where she made Diana go into town with her to look at Christmas lights with (a very unwilling) Sucy. And then another day where Akko had attempted (and failed) to teach her how to ice skate. 

It was all hardly how Diana had planned to spend her winter break, but she found herself enjoying each outing more and more. She wouldn’t exactly say she was ‘overflowing with Christmas spirit’, as Akko might describe it—but she was feeling _something_.

Perhaps it was that something that led her to stepping into Luna Nova’s cafeteria on Christmas Eve night. While all of the decorations had looked rather impressive while being set up, they were different to behold at night. Before Diana had much of a chance to take it all in, a familiar voice interrupted her thoughts.

“Diana! You really came!”

Diana turned to see Akko jogging toward her. She was wearing that same ridiculous Santa hat and beard that she had shown up at Diana’s door in the week prior. 

“I… Y-yes, well…” Diana stuttered, clearing her throat and straightening herself out. “I simply figured someone should oversee this whole thing so I… put a hold on my studies for the evening.”

Akko grinned, lifting a hand to her mouth. “Aw, are you too bashful to admit that I actually just filled you with enough holiday cheer to make you wanna come?”

“Don’t be silly,” Diana huffed, crossing her arms. “I’m just here to maintain order.”

“Sure, sure. If that’s what you say,” Akko dismissed. “I’m just glad you’re here.” 

Diana’s heart fluttered in her chest as Akko swung an arm around her shoulder, guiding her into the room. “C’mon! Let me show you around!”

The party wasn’t exactly crowded. Diana estimated there were probably about 25 students who showed up. She could see Constanze setting up a projector on the far side of the room—probably preparing more Christmas movies. Amanda O'Neill was leaning against a wall, talking to Hannah. Diana couldn’t help but notice the god awful sweater she was wearing with, ‘Kiss Me, I’m Irish’ written across the front— _and_ the gaudy mistletoe headband in her hair. Sucy stood behind the snack bar, appearing as if she was about to pour something into the punch.

Speaking of the snack bar, Diana could see the cookies that she and Akko had made a few days prior. A part of her was left wondering if it was _actually_ a good idea to make them so early. That obviously explained why the cookies that she decorated remained untouched on the table. Aside from those, there were plenty of other holiday treats that she was sure Akko and the faeries had been working hard to prepare in the kitchen all week long. She even noticed something that looked like… fried chicken?

It was unlike any Christmas party she had attended in the past, that was for sure. Any of the ones they had hosted at the manner were quiet—guests chattering among themselves, with perhaps a piano playing softly in the background. But here loud Christmas music was blasting from speakers that had been set up around the room. While Diana wasn’t familiar with all of the songs, Akko seemed to know each one of them by heart—judging by the way she was able to belt them all out during karaoke. All in all, the setup was different than what she was accustomed to, but it was rather nice. Diana was even willing to go as far as to say that Akko may have outdone herself. 

For the most part, the party remained relatively lowkey. There was one point where Diana found herself needing to scold Amanda for standing on a table, and another where the punch had to be tested for tampering. Other than that, the whole thing went off without a hitch. While Diana spent a better portion of the party being a wallflower, she actually enjoyed herself.

The later it got, the more students began to trickle out of the cafeteria to retreat to their rooms for the rest of the night. After a while, Diana found herself alone with Akko—save for a few faeries handling the festivities’ cleanup. She hadn’t intended to stay so late, but somehow found herself not wanting to leave once she had arrived.

Akko sighed dramatically, plopping herself down in a seat beside Diana. “Man, I’m exhausted!”

Diana laughed lightly. “You _were_ the life of the party.”

Akko grinned. “Ho ho ho! That’s Santa’s job!” she proclaimed in a fake, masculine voice. Though, she momentarily grew shy, glancing at Diana out of the corner of her eye. “But, uhm… Did you have fun?”

“Well, it was certainly livelier than some of the Christmas parties I’ve been to in the past,” Diana mused, returning Akko’s glance with a smile. “So… yes, I would say I quite enjoyed myself.”

The joy Akko must have been feeling burst at the seams. “Really?!” she whooped, throwing her hands in the air. “I knew you’d have a good time!”

“As a result of _your_ charm, Santa,” Diana noted playfully, poking Akko’s nose.

Akko crossed her eyes to look down at Diana’s finger. A faint blush colored her cheeks, standing out against her white Santa beard. After a moment, her eyes widened, and she gasped. “O-oh! That reminds me!” Akko jumped to her feet. “Santa has a present for you!”

Diana paused. “What?”

With a giggle, Akko turned her back on Diana to rush over to the Christmas tree behind her. Diana pressed her lips into a hard line, unsure of what to make of the idea that Akko had a _gift_ for her. Before she could dwell on it too much, Akko came rushing back over—a box wrapped in red paper resting in her hands. 

“Here you go! Because you’ve been on my nice list all year!” Akko said, holding out the gift. “Ho ho ho!”

“I…” Diana hesitated, glancing from the gift and back to Akko. “Akko, you didn’t have to do that.”

“Of course I didn’t have to—I wanted to!” Akko assured, reclaiming her seat beside Diana. “It’s Christmas.”

Shaking her head, Diana frowned. “I didn’t get you anything.”

“Just open it!” Akko pressed, shoving the box into Diana’s hands.

Upon closer inspection, Diana could tell that the wrapping job done on the gift was… far from elegant. The paper was messy and there was _way_ too much tape on it. The snowmen smiling up at her were crinkled beyond belief, and the bow placed on top was just barely hanging on. It was a haphazard wrapping job, at best. But Diana also found herself strangely endeared by it.

Akko bounced excitedly in the seat beside her—a smile spread from ear to ear. Her eyes kept flicking from Diana and back down to the gift, waiting expectantly. Guilt twanged in Diana’s chest for not having gotten Akko anything in return, but Akko seemed so excited about the whole thing that the least she could do was open it. 

Grasping at the paper, Diana tore away the subpar wrapping job and opened the box beneath it. Placed carefully inside of the box was some sort of book or album. There was a piece of paper tucked away behind the plastic cover with, ‘Shiny Diana’s Fantastic Adventures!’ scribbled across it.

Diana furrowed her brows, pulling the book from out of the box. “What is it…?”

“Take a look!” Akko encouraged, scooting closer.

Diana opened the book and began to flip through its contents. It was filled with photos, newspaper clippings, school records, messages, and poorly drawn doodles. Each and every one documented a different event that had taken place since Akko’s arrival at Luna Nova over a year prior—events they had experienced together.

There was a page dedicated to the broom race that had a newspaper article glued to it—a picture of them neck and neck nearing the finish line at the center. Another was covered in doodles of the Cavendish Manor; Daryl, and her ‘evil snakes’, alongside Akko’s very detailed (and obviously biased) narration of the events that took place there. There was a page dedicated to the day they destroyed the Noir Missile—several pages, actually. Akko had collected articles, pictures, and social media posts about the event and put them all together in a messy collage. Taking up an entire page of its own was an image from the news broadcast of the event of herself and Akko riding the Shooting Star. 

After that, there was page after page of things they had done following the missile. There were photos from the days their group would gather to watch Akko try to fly. The very first ‘selfie’ Diana had ever taken with Akko was carefully pasted onto one of the pages—right beside a ticket stub from a movie she and Akko went to go see together. Some of the pictures were blurry, obviously taken by Akko in the spur of the moment, but captured fond memories nonetheless. 

Each page of the little scrapbook was crafted with so much love, care, and attention that Diana could feel her heart swell thinking about the time Akko put into it. Her narrations of the events in the book, taped or glued to the pages, were just about as endearing as the images themselves.

“The past year has been super crazy,” Akko said, pulling Diana from her thoughts. “I’ve done all kinds of things I never would have imagined. It’s been like one big adventure—and I have you to thank for a lot of it, Diana. So I kind of wanted to put this together as my way of showing that. Without having you to help me out so much, I’m not sure where I’d be now ”

“Don’t be silly,” Diana protested, fully taking her attention away from Akko’s scrapbook. “You’ve gotten to where you are entirely through your own efforts.”

“That’s not true!” Akko countered with a frown. “Lotte, Sucy, Amanda, Constanze, Jasminka… It’s because I have such amazing friends that I made it through my first year here.” She reached over, grasping Diana’s hand in her own. “But… I have you to thank most of all. You’ve done so much for me. I mean, if you hadn’t found me during that night last year… I don’t really know what I would have done.”

Akko fidgeted in her seat, avoiding meeting Diana’s eye—almost as though she were ashamed to bring up that night at all. “Look, I’m really bad at this sort of thing,” she continued, biting her lip. “I think what I’m trying to say is… I know we didn’t start off on the best foot, and I know we both said and did some stuff that wasn’t exactly _kind_ … but I’m glad all of that is behind us.”

Finally meeting her gaze, Akko flashed Diana the brightest grin possible. “I’m glad you’re my friend, Diana. Probably one of the best I’ve ever had. You’ve done more for me than I could ever put into words.” She shrugged. “So, this is just my way of trying to say thank you. And it’s also my way of reminding you that if you ever get lonely or something… you’ve got a lot of people who really care about you.”

“I’m… not even sure what to say… I…” Diana struggled, grasping for the right words. 

The gift was so simple, yet so thoughtful. She couldn’t even begin to imagine the amount of hours Akko must have put into finding everything and crafting it all together—all because she wanted to say… thank you? To her? Everything she had done was so minimal compared to the things Akko did. Even throughout the course of the entire week, Akko went out of her way to plan event after event just to ensure that Diana wouldn’t be alone—even though she didn’t have to.

Akko shouldn’t have been the one thanking her. 

“No,” Diana decided with a shake of her head. She placed her hand on Akko’s knee and squeezed it. “Thank _you_ , Akko. Not just for the gift—for everything.” 

Akko tilted her head, and Diana continued on with, “I know I haven’t been the most willing participant this past week… and I haven’t always been as… _open_ as you are. But, I appreciate what you’ve done.” She cracked a smile, glancing at Akko. “I believe that because of you my holiday has been more enjoyable than usual.”

Akko’s smile widened, and Diana could feel the blush that was blooming on her cheeks. She glanced away as she admitted, “My world has been a little more exciting with you as my… friend. And I hope that we can continue… this sort of relationship down the line.”

“Well, that’s what the blank pages are for!” Akko beamed. And without missing a beat, she flipped through the book until its pages were bare. She put a hand down on the blank page in her lap. “We have all kinds of adventures ahead of us! You can fill this to the brim with them!” 

Diana wasn’t sure if it was the Christmas lights or just Akko being Akko, but her eyes were undoubtedly sparkling. Everything about her, about the gift, about that evening, had Diana feeling warmer than she had during the holidays in a long time. One part of her hoped that this book would be filled with memories of many more outings and holidays just like it.

“Perhaps I will.”

The loud grunt interrupted their moment. Diana looked over her shoulder to see a minotaur standing impatiently behind them, a broom in hand. He tapped his foot, looking expectantly at the floor that needed cleaning.

Diana offered him a wave of apology and rose out of her seat. “That’s probably our cue to go.”

“Yeah, I guess so,” Akko laughed, standing up and brushing her clothes off. “I think I’ll stay a little longer to help with cleanup.”

“Would you like my assistance?”

“Nah. It’s fine. I know you have studying to do or whatever,” Akko dismissed. “Besides, I think the faeries can only handle so much help from an aristocrat.”

Diana could hear an audible grumble from the group of faeries standing nearby and resisted the urge to roll her eyes. “Right. I’ll be going, then.” 

Pushing in her chair and picking up the stray wrapping paper that had been left on the table (one less mess for the faeries to clean up, Diana internalized), Diana readied herself to leave. She picked Akko’s scrapbook, allowing her eyes to linger on the cover as she made her way toward the cafeteria’s exit. As she took in the words scribbled across it, an old warm feeling kindled in her that she hadn’t felt in a long time.

“Uhm. Actually…” Diana started hesitantly, getting Akko’s attention, “one last thing.” 

Diana turned on her heel and quickly scurried back over to Akko. Akko stared at her in confusion as she got close and gently tugged down her Santa beard. Akko didn’t even have time to react as Diana leaned in and pressed a soft kiss against her cheek.

“Merry Christmas, Akko.”

Diana could hear Akko’s sharp intake of breath as her face turned about as red as her hat. Her jaw was hanging open and she remained rooted in her spot, likely too shocked to move. Ignoring the rapid pounding in her chest and the growing warmth in her own face, Diana spun on her heel and made her retreat toward the door once more.

There was no stopping the satisfied smile she could feel taking shape as she noticed Akko touch her cheek out of the corner of her eye.

“M-mer…” Akko struggled to squeak out, barely above a whisper, “Merry Christmas, Diana…”

* * *

_End._


End file.
